The Final Rewind
by Dairene
Summary: Finding she cannot bring herself to sacrifice either Chloe or Arcadia Bay, Max makes one last desperate gamble... but will she succeed?
1. The Final Rewind

Max clenched her fists desperately as she tried to make a decision, as the horrific storm bore down on Arcadia Bay like the apocalypse given form.

"Max, it's time," Chloe managed tearfully.

"Chloe… I'm so, so sorry…" Max choked back her sobs. "I… I don't want to do this."

Chloe threw a bear hug around Max. "I know, Max. But we have to. We have to save everybody, okay? And you'll make those fuckers pay for what they did to Rachel."

As Max looked on in dismay, Chloe continued, "Being together this week, it was the best farewell gift I could have hoped for. You're my hero, Max."

Tears in her eyes, Max stepped forward to hold her girlfriend and gave her one last, passionate kiss. _It just wasn't fair- this just wasn't fair! They'd had so little time together…_

"I'll always love you… Now, get out of here, please! Do it before I freak!" Chloe implored desperately. "And Max Caulfield? Don't you forget about me…"

"Never." Max said, with more honestly and feeling in that statement than anything she'd ever said in her life.

Finally, she turned, grief-stricken, toward the blue butterfly photo Chloe had kept for the last week and stared hard into it… and let herself fall through time.

Max found herself back in the bathroom having just taken a photo of a butterfly. She let the photo fall to the floor as despair and dread flooded her mind. Immediately, tears began to stream down her face.

 _Oh god, I can't let Chloe die! I just can't do it! But I can't let thousands die either! There has to be a different way! There has to be!_

She spun around panickedly, clutching her head, as she heard Nathan barge into the girl's room.

 _Oh wait, there's another photo, I have my selfie…_ she rooted in her bag for the selfie she'd taken in Jefferson's class that fateful day. _This… should work, right? I mean, my vision in class… was what started everything… right? Oh god… just… anyway out, please…_

She tried to steady her shaking hand and focus on her photograph, a silent prayer on her lips, as her surroundings began to blur and voices began to emerge…

Max was sitting in Jefferson's class once more, having just taken a selfie of herself. She fielded Jefferson's question about daguerreotypes, managing to suppress her anger and hatred of the man. He simply wasn't important right now. She sent the same text to David Madsen that she'd done to warn him about Mark Jefferson.

Next, she took out her diary and began writing furiously. "Dear Max, I am yourself from the future, no joke. You just had a vision of a terrible storm that wrecks Arcadia Bay, lighthouse collapsing on you and all that. After class, head to the girl's restroom right away and hide behind the furthest stall. Nathan Prescott will burst into the restroom- he will have a gun.

Chloe Price, your dear childhood friend you abandoned (great fucking job, past Max) was drugged and kidnapped by Nathan. She managed to escape and now she's trying to blackmail Nathan about it. If you do nothing, Nathan WILL shoot and KILL Chloe! He's dangerous, he drugged and overdosed the missing girl Rachel to death, drugged and kidnapped Kate Marsh, he'll beat up Warren in your future! You have to stop him! Hit that fire alarm in the bathroom!

Also, you have time travel powers, you're a human time machine, but DON'T use those powers! DON'T! It'll cause an unforseen chain reaction- butterfly effect, chaos theory, and all that will cause the storm in your vision! Joyce will die! Kate, Warren, Dana, Juliet, Stella, Alyssa, all your friends, teachers, classmates WILL DIE! So don't use your powers and don't tell Chloe so she won't pressure you into demonstrating it!

Chloe is interested in you, by the way… she loves- will love you. She'll be mad at first for being ignored all those years, but she'll get over it fast. It'll be easier than you think. Be there for her when she mourns her friend Rachel, who Nathan drugged to death.

Also, Victoria is not (completely) the bitch you think she is. She's insecure and envious of your abilities, Max. She's jealous but also consciously guilty about her envy. I hope you give her a chance and reach out to her."

Looking over her finished note, Max smiled to herself.

 _Finally… finally… maybe now I can save both Chloe and Arcadia Bay… I'm sorry, William, I'm sorry Rachel… I couldn't save you guys. And I'm sorry to everyone for all the pain and suffering I caused in all these timelines… but it's over now…_

The room turned red and slowly blurred away.


	2. Consequences

Max blinked rapidly as the scene materialized around her. "Where… am I?"

The sun shone brightly overhead, so Max prayed to whatever gods there were that the storm had never happened.

Looking down, she was astonished to find that she was standing in Arcadia Bay's cemetery, surrounded by gravestones. "What the- No, don't tell me she-"

Looking around frantically, Max finally spotted the tell-tale blue hair of her best friend, kneeling beside a tombstone and nearly wept with joy. "Chloe! I did it, Chloe! I saved you and the town! See, I knew-"

Then Max realized Chloe hadn't turned around or reacted at all. "Chloe? What- what happened-" Max clamped a hand over her mouth.

 _You dumb bitch!_ Max chided herself. _Chloe's probably here to mourn Rachel… you've just gone and made yourself look like an insensitive asshole…_

"Shit, I'm so, so sorry about Rachel… I didn't mean…" Max walked up to Chloe to lay a hand on her shoulder.

And her hand passed right through Chloe like it was thin air.

Max froze in utter shock. "Wha-?"

Then she heard what Chloe was saying through choked sobs. "Damn it, Max, why… why did you have to leave me when I needed you most, damn it? And you come back like this? Fuck you!"

"Chloe, I'm so, so sorry," Max descended into tears as well. "Please, listen…"

"And you know what is worst? I want to hate you… but I- I just can't shake the painful, forlorn, lonely look in your eyes as you lay on that bathroom floor. Your weak scream of pain when I was trying to stem your bleeding. That I couldn't do a damn thing about it. You and Rachel… both gone… just like that! It's so… so fucking unfair!"

"What do you mean-" Max stammered.

And then the realization hit her like a sledgehammer and she felt a chill through her entire body. "No, it can't be…" She stepped closer to look up at the tombstone in front of Chloe. No. No. No!

Maxine Caulfield

A loving daughter and dear friend

1995-2013

"NO!" Max lunged forward to clutch the gravestone… and her hands passed straight through. "Fuck! Fuck! I'm a… a fucking ghost!" Max clutched her head hysterically. "Nice job, you've gone and fucked up big time now!"

She lifted her right hand up… and nothing happened. No rewind powers either. She looked to the various offerings laid in front of the resting place- candles, stuffed toys, flowers, a camera, random memorabilia… and photos of her life.

Can I…?

She leaned close to one and stared hard at it. Absolutely nothing.

"I… I'm really dead…" Max gulped in horror. Dead, gone, finished… there's no going back. "No superpowers to save me this time."

She looked over to the distraught Chloe.

"Chloe… I'm so, so sorry… I wish I could tell you the truth… about everything. I'm so sorry I can't be there for you. I miss you so much already… but I'm so glad you're alive." She threw her incorporeal arms around Chloe.

And that's when it happened.

Chloe suddenly jerked as if electrocuted by Max's touch, and a flood of images inundated Chloe's mind, pouring from Max into Chloe.

Alternate timelines, deaths that never happened. Nathan shooting her, a fire alarm, Max in her room, Max showing off her powers, Max visiting her hideout, getting stuck in the train tracks, breaking into Blackwell, a midnight swim. A timeline where William never died and Max stayed in touch, a new truck, a crippling accident, pain and suffering, and a final day alongside Max. Searching for Rachel, searching Frank's RV to consternating results, shooting Frank and Max rewinding, finding Rachel's remains, infiltrating a Prescott bunker, infiltrating a Vortex party, Max falling to the ground as she wheels on Mark Jefferson, before a bullet ends it all. Then helping Max pack for San Francisco and a desperate last phone call amid a terrifying storm in another timeline. Max's desperate plea outside a Vortex party, and a final, tearful, painful goodbye atop a stormy cliff.

"Oh god, oh god!" Chloe screamed, clutching her head in despair as she remembered everything. "Max, I… killed you! I sent you back… I killed you!"

At the same time, memories of this timeline flooded Max's mind. How she- the she in his timeline- confronted Nathan in the bathroom, accused him of drugging Chloe and Kate and murdering Rachel. How he'd drawn a gun on her… and fired. The pain and then the cold, hard floor. Nathan panicking. A horrified Chloe coming in. Screaming Max's name. David tackling Nathan. Watching her own funeral as a spirit and the mourns of her family and friends.

"I… I finally managed to be a hero for real…" Max felt oddly proud despite herself, despite the tears staining her cheeks. "I… was able to protect everyone…"

"M-Max?"

Max looked down to see Chloe looking up at her with a desperate, hopeful look.

"Is- is that really you, Max? Am… I losing it? You look… translucent… Are you a ghost? Time travel? Please, oh god…"

Max cleared her throat. "Yes, Chloe… I'm here… I don't even fully understand. I think… I'm dead… I… guess I'm a ghost now… I don't even have my powers anymore."

"Max, Max, I'm so sorry…" Chloe hugged the air where Max was supposed to be. "I didn't mean to kill you!"

"No, you didn't, Chloe! I got myself killed! I chose to confront Nathan in that bathroom knowing he was armed."

"...to save me. None of this would've happened if I hadn't been stupid enough to try and confront Nathan in the first place. Or sent you back during the storm. You would be alive!" Chloe was guilt-ridden.

"Do you think I could've lived with myself, knowing I let you die?" Max countered. "After all we've been through? I'd be a mess! It sounds strange to say this... but I'm oddly happy it turned out like this instead of the other way around. But I'm more worried about you, Chloe."

"I screwed up, I'm so sorry, you… don't deserve this…! I love you!" Chloe broke down again.

"I love you too," Max sobbed. "I'm so sorry I can't stay with you forever! Please Chloe, you have to carry on, be strong without me! Live a long, happy fulfilling life! Fall in love, make new friends, have kids if you want, fulfill your dreams! I'm so sorry I failed you again! I abandoned you when you needed me most! I wasn't… there for you when William passed… and now Rachel's gone and I can't…

I'm so sorry, Chloe, for putting you through this, I never thought this would happen. I'm sorry to my parents, Kate, Dana, Warren, Fernando and Kristen... what they must be going through right now. I feel really shitty."

Max broke down sobbing, falling to her knees and clutching her head in anguish.

Wordless, Chloe slid next to Max and held Max's spectral figure as best as she could. "Max- I- I promise you, I'll try to live my life well. You sacrificed yourself… for me. I… need to live up to what you gave me. I love you, Max. I always will."

Max leaned into Chloe- although she was sort of intangible, she felt some physical resistance when she leaned against Chloe, and Chloe felt a sort of electric buzz on her skin.

A buzz that began to recede.

Chloe's head snapped up to look at Max, who was rapidly fading. "Max!"

Max's figure had begun to shimmer and fade. "I- I'm sorry… it looks- like my time is over. G-Goodbye, Chloe! I love you! We'll… see each other again… but not for a long time, I'm warning you, Chloe!"

"I love you, Max! I promise I won't… off myself… but, damn, I'll miss you! One day, we'll be together again! I'll never forget you! Don't you dare forget me, Max!"

"Never!" Max couldn't help but to smile bitterly at using the same response on that stormy cliff next to the lighthouse.

At last, Max finally faded from view, Chloe wiped her tears from her eyes, stood up, and left the graveyard.

In another world, Max continued to see the graveyard through a blurry portal… and found herself standing… in what looked like Chloe's house.

"What the… where… am I?"

"Max!" A familiar voice mixed with joy and sadness shouted.

Max turned and saw none other than Chloe's father, William Price.

"William!" Max wept and hugged him.

"I'm so sorry about everything, Max."

"How… much do you know?" Max looked up, not letting go of him.

"Not much. We in the afterlife can't see much of the living world but some glimpses here and there, and occasionally meet the living in their dreams. I saw your conversation with Chloe here. I kinda put the pieces together. Thank you… for what you sacrificed for Chloe."

"I'll miss her so much," Max broke into sobs again, leaning into William.

"We all will, Max," A feminine voice said behind William. "Thank you… for saving Chloe and avenging me."

Sniffling, Max peered around William.

Standing behind William was a girl Max had never met before but she'd seen all too many times before.

"Rachel?"

"Hey Max. Chloe was visiting my grave earlier, so I just… stuck around. Chloe told me so much about you. Course she was always angry when she talked about you… but I sensed deep down she missed you so much."

The three quietly turned around to see a fading image of Chloe walking out of the graveyard.

"Goodbye," Max whispered, sobbing, as Rachel hugged her and William patted her on her back. "God, I miss her so much already."

"We all do, kiddo. Don't you worry. We'll see her someday."

"I know," Max swiped at her tears furiously.

However, none of them realized at the time just how long that would be.


	3. Chloe's Graduation

June 2015

Bay City College, Bay City, Oregon...

Chloe Price took a deep breath and stepped out onto the stage with in her graduation cloak with the rest of her class. She took her place in front of her girlfriend and college classmate, Eva Marcus. Eva grinned mischievously at her girlfriend, and Chloe gave her a wry look in return. They both looked out at the crowd gathered in the auditorium, scanning for any sign of their families. Chloe, however, remained cautious, not wanting to get her hopes up- she knew all too well the pain of disappointment.

She felt a strange pang of jealousy when she saw Eva wave happily to her own parents.

And then she saw them.

Chloe couldn't help but grin foolishly as she saw her mother, Joyce, wave from the crowd, holding a camera. So they did make it after all!

Next to her stood David, looking a bit awkward, but nonetheless proud and happy to be there.

Chloe's heart leapt when she saw her other friends- Mikey North, Steph Gingrich- and Max's friends- Kate Marsh, Warren Graham, and Dana Ward file into the auditorium. Her friends now- Kate, Warren, and Dana had even Victoria had talked to Chloe and gotten a lot closer after Rachel and Max died, working hard to support each other in the tragic aftermath. Victoria was especially guilt-ridden about how she'd treated Max, and was especially nice to Chloe, believing that would be what Max would have wanted. Whenever Chloe felt down, or on the verge of a breakdown, she would contact them and try to talk things out.

One time, right after she enrolled in Bay City College, while she was drunk and reading some of her rage-filled past letters she'd written to Max and never sent, she had felt so guilt-ridden she didn't want to live anymore. Max had more than redeemed herself for the mistake of staying out of touch all those years- gone through hell and, in the end, gave her life for Chloe. Chloe also knew now that those five years had hurt Max too- but she had hurt in a much quieter way. And there was nothing Chloe could do to go back and apologize for her angry thoughts toward her.

She'd made a sloppy, drunken phone call to none other than Victoria, crying inconsolably and babbling about ending her life. And to her surprise, Victoria and Kate had driven all the way to Chloe's dorm in Bay City to console her in person and calm her down. They had spent a day together until Chloe had recovered. They'd also let Dana know, who called by Skype. Chloe could never thank them enough for preventing her from doing something stupid, something Rachel and Max would never have wanted her to do.

She smiled broadly- quite unlike herself- and waved to her friends in the crowd. Though she felt a little disappointed Victoria wasn't there, it wasn't a surprise- Victoria, who was attending the University of Southern California, had Skyped and told her she'd been feeling ill the past week. It'd been bad enough that her parents had driven to California to pick her up, not wanting her to drive back to Oregon for the summer.

After the brief graduation ceremony, in which Eva and Chloe both received their electrician degrees, the new graduates dispersed into their crowd to meet with family and friends.

"Victoria offers her congratulations and best wishes," Kate Marsh greeted Chloe, holding Chloe's hand. "And apologizes for not being able to come. Dana, Taylor, and I went to her house just yesterday to see how she was. Her fever is gone, but she's still in no shape to travel."

"I'll be sure to visit her. Eva and I will be taking a trip to Arcadia Bay now that we've graduated," Chloe added. "But it's still unclear if we're going to stay."

"Congrats!" Drew North offered Chloe a high-five, as he and his brother Mikey came over. "Knew you could make something of yourself."

"I'm sure Rachel and Max would be proud," Mikey added solemnly.

"Don't be such a downer, Mike," Steph Gingrich nudged the boy slightly.

"It's fine," Chloe dismissed. "Times like these, I do think about what they would say, how they'd feel if they were still around." She looked away nostalgically.

"Chloe!" Joyce, who had been watching her daughter's interactions from the, took the opportunity to step in and embrace her. "I'm so proud of you! And David too."

David nodded awkwardly and let out a rare smile. "Make something good of your life, okay, kid?" He'd beaten himself up a lot over how he'd let Nathan and Mr. Jefferson get away with their crimes right under his nose, leading to the deaths of Rachel and Max, and the suffering Kate had to go through.

Chloe bit back her sharp tongue and managed a smile. "Hell, yes. I'll do it for Rachel and Max. And Eva too."

"Eva?" David raised an eyebrow.

Chloe smirked- they would have to meet eventually at some point or another. She turned and yelled, "Hey, Eva! Care to meet my parents?"

Eva, who was busy talking to her high school friends, heard Chloe and hurried over at once.

"This is my mom Joyce and my stepdad David," Chloe gestured. "Joyce, David, this is my hella amazing girlfriend Eva. I don't think I could've kept my grades afloat these last two years if it wasn't for her help."

"H-Hi-," Eva stammered a little, offering a handshake.

"It's so nice to meet you," Joyce smiled, taking the hand. "Please, take care of Chloe."

David tensed his fists up and let out an unconscious growl. "If you break her heart- if anything happens to her, I'll- "

Eva backed away nervously, holding out her hands nervously. "Hey, hey, now, don't- I won't-"

Chloe sighed. The girl was adorable, brilliant, and enthusiastic, but she really could be a walkover sometimes. She stepped between Eva and David and flung out her arms. "David, leave her alone!"

"David!" Joyce chided, jabbing him lightly in the ribs. "It's time for you to stand down. Chloe is an adult now- she can make her own decisions. Don't make the same mistake you did with Rachel or Max. Don't push our daughter away again."

David hung his head, feeling ashamed over what had happened with Chloe's previous friends. "Sorry, Chloe, Eva… I got carried away..."

"So, um, are you guys going back to Arcadia Bay now?"

"We're applying for jobs in Bay City and Arcadia Bay," Chloe explained. "We'll see which offers us the best options and settle there."

"If push comes to shove, and we don't get anything good, we'll go try our luck in Portland," Eva elaborated.

"This doesn't sound like you," Joyce raised an eyebrow. "This is Eva's idea, isn't it?"

"This is our idea!" Chloe asserted, though mellowed. "She's rubbed off on me much more than I expected."

"Your daughter is much smarter than she usually lets on," Eva remarked.

"I know that," Joyce asserted. "If things had been different… never mind."

"Good luck!" David managed to give another uncharacteristic smile, giving a thumbs-up to the young couple. "If you've managed to change Chloe that much, there just might be hope for you two!"


End file.
